Down at the White House, what seemed to be more than 100 disability activists risked arrest by handcuffing themselves to the fence while agitating for the Community Choice Act.

Update: 91 arrested.

DCist reports some Greenpeace activists were also arrested today.

Ten New Englanders travelled to Washington, DC for a march yesterday against China’s support for the government of Sudan’s genocidal practices in the Darfur region.

The group included one person who had been to Darfur and four who had been arrested for protesting the violence in Darfur with nonviolent civil disobedience.

The day before this march, Human Rights Watch issued a press release saying, “Darfur: ‘Scorched Earth’ Tactics Warrant UN Sanctions.”

The march began at the Chinese Embassy’s “Economic and Commercial Counselor’s Office,” which seemed to be in some sort of mall/office complex. We handed out a few fliers and had many honks of support from cars driving by.

From here we marched a couple miles to the Sudanese Embassy. This has been the focus of previous demonstrations, and brought back fond memories for several of the marchers. You may recall that a few years back, during a 4-day fast at the embassy, some of us even helped with landscaping. I was proud to note that the yard is finally coming together. We were happy to see both Mr. Bashara and the Italian landscaper were there. Demonstrator Scott Schaeffer-Duffy went onto the embassy grounds to chat with them.

From there we marched to the main Chinese Embassy, where they were holding a day of mourning for the earthquake victims. We’ve had similarly unfortunate timing in the past; for example, our four-day fast at the Sudanese Embassy coincided with a day of mourning for Sudanese Vice President John Garang.

One Chinese man objected strongly to our presence. The police moved us to the official demonstration area, where we joined people demonstrating in favor of Falun Gong and North Korean refugees in China.

Our flyer included words of condolences for the earthquake, but since we had no access to people visiting the embassy, we had no way of expressing our full message. Two of the demonstrators flipped their signs around and wrote “We Mourn The Earthquake Victims” on them.

Reportedly President Bush visited the Chinese Embassy that day, but not during the time we were there.

This visit to the embassies was less powerful than our previous visits, which included either nonviolent civil disobedience or fasting. Still, I was glad I went, because with the current pressure on China over all sorts of human rights issues, my voice isn’t quiet and unheard but part of a worldwide chorus.

Dear Sirs and Madams,

As a peace activist who has witnessed the tragedy of avoidable loss of life in war zones, I offer you and your people my heartfelt condolence for the suffering caused by the recent earthquake in your country. As a parent, I am especially sympathetic to all those Chinese parents whose children were injured or killed.

It is my desire to spare other parents this same agony that inspires me to write to you today. In December 2004, as a member of a Catholic Worker Peace Team, I visited Darfur, Sudan where I witnessed enormous harm inflicted on hundreds of thousands of civilians by the Sudanese army and its militias. We delivered food to many in pitiful camps for internally displaced people, but realized that only an end to the Sudanese government’s genocidal campaign against its African citizens could truly restore those victims to health and safety. When we asked Sudanese human rights activists what was the most effective nonviolent action we could take to end genocide in Darfur, we were told to protest at the Sudanese Embassy in Washington, DC. We have done this several times since then, but have become increasingly aware that diplomatic efforts to end the genocide have been frustrated by the continued economic, military, and political support being given to the Sudanese government by the government of China.

And so, on Tuesday, May 20, at 9 a.m., we will hold a small, peaceful vigil outside your embassy and then march to the Embassy of Sudan for another solemn vigil. We do not do these things to point fingers or to stir up anti-Chinese or anti-Sudanese sentiments, but to reach out to the good people in both governments who can use their influence to end the genocide and save lives. Our signs will say, “China’s Support for Sudan- an Olympic Mistake.” We realize that our own government has made many mistakes as well, most notably in Iraq, and we are trying to change those policies as well, but cannot forget the vulnerable people of Darfur in the meantime.

Earthquakes, typhoons, and tornadoes will always take innocent lives, but humanity can decide that no more children, women, and men will die from genocide. Your government has enormous power to help save lives in Darfur. Taking unambiguous action to persuade the Sudanese government to end the killing and to allow unfettered access to Darfur for United Nations’ personnel would help make the Olympic celebration in Beijing more joyful and freer from controversy.

With respect and admiration for the Chinese people,

Scott Schaeffer-Duffy

Please gather with us at midday at the Chinese Embassy, 2201 Wisconsin Ave., NW, to hold signs which say, “China’s Support for Sudan is an Olympic Mistake” and “STOP THE GENOCIDE IN DARFUR NOW.” Some of these signs have enlarged photos of victims in Darfur. We will have a limited number of t-shirts available with the same message for those who wish to join the rally and 1.3 mile march to the Sudanese Embassy at 2210 Massachusetts Ave. NW.

Please contact us now for details and for information about rides from Massachusetts (leaving at noon on May 19th), as well as about lodging in Washington, DC for the night of the 19th. With the Olympics less than 100 days away, the media and Chinese government are paying greater attention to the Darfur issue. For the sake of those Darfurians whose lives are still risk, please consider spending a half a day in the nation’s capital. RSVP ASAP!

Scott Schaeffer-Duffy
Saints Francis & Therese Catholic Worker
52 Mason Street, Worcester, MA 01610
508 753-3588
theresecw@gmail.com

You can download the mp3, subscribe to the feed, or see other formats.

The defendants plan to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Update: Scott Schaeffer-Duffy adds, “This is what the court ruled:”

District of Columbia Court of Appeals senior judges Newman, Belson, and Warren King: Appellants appeal their convictions of incommoding for blocking the entrance to the Sudanese embassy in protest of that country’s policies in Darfur. They claim that the trial court erred in rejecting their defenses of necessity and justification under international law. We affirm.

Substantially for the reasons stated by the trail judge in his Findings of the Court, we are satisfied that the government presented sufficient evidence to establish a violation of DC criminal code 22-1307 and that the court properly rejected the defenses put forth. United States v. Maxwell, Emry v. United States, Reale v. United States, Shiel v. United States, Griffin v. United States, Morgan v. District of Columbia. [cititions omitted]. Accordingly, the judgments of conviction are affirmed.

Scott adds:

The fact that the Appeals Court rendered its decision only two days after oral arguments and ruled in favor of the government which presented no oral argument at all, is unusual. One lawyer we know called it “disrespectful.” Even though the trial judge, prosecution, and government attorney who filed the brief for the District of Columbia all recognized that the issue at hand in this case is “genocide in Darfur,” the Appeals Court alludes only to “policies in Darfur.” Were this case concerning only amorphous policies which we object to instead of the uncontested violation of an international law which was ratified by the US Senate in 1986, we might let the case rest, but since the issue is of so much more seriousness than the Appeals Court afforded it, we will pursue this matter to the US Supreme Court. The cases the Appeals Court cited are all different in fact and law from the Sudanese Embassy case. This case is unprecedented, even though other cases tried unsuccessfully to raise international law and necessity. This case is the first to have evidence admitted at trial to support all the elements of a necessity defense, evidence that was not refuted or contested by the prosecution. This is the first case which concerned a harm affirmed by the President of the United States and his Secretary of Defense as well as the expert testimony admitted at trial. For the sake of the hundreds of thousand who have been killed in Darfur and the millions who are displaced and still at risk, we will vigorously appeal this decision and hope that it receives the serious attention it deserves at long last.

Yesterday, I talked to two of them, Ken Hannaford-Ricardi and Scott Schaeffer-Duffy, about how it went. The men are members of the Saints Francis & Therese Catholic Worker community in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Click here to listen to the conversation (mp3)

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Ken Hannaford-Ricardi and Scott Schaeffer-Duffy

I made a crummy recording of the discussion, which you can hear below. Because of battery trouble, it cuts off in the middle of Councilor Michael “Dah-foo” Perotto’s introduction, and cuts back in as Councilor Joff Smith is speaking. After the council voted, Joe O’Brien, Darfur native Abu Asal Abu Asal, and Mike Benedetti said a few words of additional support.

Note also that Mayor Lukes mentioned the Armenian Genocide in her remarks, and asked that language explicitly using the word “genocide” be added. (The US Congress is currently considering labelling the Armenian Genocide a “genocide,” with Turkey strongly objecting. AP: Bush urges defeat of genocide bill.)

Documents from this vote

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10j. Request City Auditor and the Worcester Retirement System to divest the retirement system of any investment in the Sudan. (Perotto, Smith, Palmieri, Rushton)

It’s disappointing that it took election games to motivate this move, and though the paper estimates this will move at most a fraction of a million dollars of investment, I hope the Council votes to pass this. I don’t think it’s too little, and I don’t think it’s too late.

I also hope this helps set a precedent, and that the Council will be willing to consider international affairs that impact the city in the future. I know local activists could come up with a long list of regimes and companies that a responsibly-invested pension fund shouldn’t be involved in.

Update: City Council asks Worcester to divest from Sudan